There is Someone

Perhaps it’s just me, but this seems to be another one of those weeks when a host of folks in my extended circle of acquaintance are struggling with major issues, mostly in the area of health. This morning, one friend’s father underwent an operation for prostate cancer. Another friend’s dad was in the hospital to have a pace maker installed. One friend is struggling with marital issues. And to top it off, a relative who has been fighting pancreatic cancer just received the diagnosis yesterday that she is now in stage 4 and incurable. That makes it a pretty big week … and it makes my own problems seem pretty small. What do you tell people who are going through such things? What hope or wisdom can we offer them? Modern medicine is a wonderful thing, yet it has its limits. While we hope for cures and resolution on these overwhelming issues, there are deeper questions to be answered. When folks go through such things they often come face to face with the big questions about life … and afterlife. When you stand at the brink of eternity and gaze down into the chasm of its unknown depths, well that can be pretty disconcerting. I don’t have all the answers. However, there is comfort in knowing who does know those answers: God. If you disagree with me, then things can appear pretty bleak indeed. But for those who know Him, they have the hope of a valiant rescue from the darkness which lies beyond the brink of that eternal cliff. That selfsame God also offers comfort to those who are in distress and wisdom to those who would but ask for it. Do you know a person who is teetering on the brink of disaster, or are you perhaps even there yourself? God has the answers, God is the answer. He’s there, and He listens. Is the darkness closing in? The Lord can be a light in that darkness. Yes, there is someone who can help. Ask Him.

There is Someone
There is someone who pierces the darkness
When it seems to be closing in
Who honors the faith of a weary soul
Even when it is growing thin
There is someone who gives His strength
To the lonely and to the weak
Who promises that He shall be found
By all who earnestly seek
There is one who hears the faintest cry
Who feels the smallest tears
Who sees beyond the clouds of doubt
And comforts the deepest fears
There is someone who is a friend
One whose work is never done
He has the power to help and heal
His name is Jesus, God’s own Son
By Frank Carpenter ©

Well Done

Well Done
All of us want our lives to count, to mean something. Of course, we each define that in a different way. Some people climb mountains, others build things, still others strive to leave their legacy in written words or upon painted canvases. Naturally, what we choose to do with our lives
has much to do with how we think those lives will be judged, or by whom. If we live to please the critics, be they art, literature or otherwise, their values will become our own. If we live to gain honor in the court of popular opinion than our acceptance therein will rule our actions. The list goes on and on. So the big question in life remains, “What is your purpose in life, whom do you serve?” The critics can be a fickle bunch and their elusive approval can prove a lifelong torment. The opinion of the crowd can also prove a wicked task master. The fact is that you just can’t please everyone. In the end, we must choose who we will please, who’s opinion really matters. For those who believe there is a God and a life after this one, the time usually comes in their life when they realize that God is the only one truly worth pleasing. After all, His opinion out ranks, and outlives, all others. The praise and acceptance of men can bring great joy, but it is a fleeting thing. Rather, we should strive to please and honor the one being whose opinions and existence are everlasting. I have had my very modest share of the handshakes, applause and praise of men, but even the prospect of an entire lifetime of the same pales in comparison to one thought which looms in my mind. Once all of our deeds are done, and certainly unalterable, there will come a moment when each of us will stand before the holy God of the universe and feel his all knowing gaze pierce to the very depths of our souls. At that moment the praise of men will amount to no more than a grain of sand in the dunes of eternity past. And at that critical juncture of our existence, what could mean more than to hear our Lords utter the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” Now there’s a reason for living … and living well.

Well Done
Perhaps I consider far too rarely
When thinking the deeper thoughts
That life is entirely too short
And I fail to live it as I ought
I don’t spend enough time with family
Or in worship or prayer or song
And too often I let myself be swept
Along with the rest of the human throng
I overlook the needs of my neighbors
And the people who matter most
Often trading the simple pleasures
For those about which I could boast
I don’t spend enough of life barefoot
Wasting too much on what I regret
Not enough in the forest or mountains
Missing too many sunrises and sets
I want to live a life that matters
One that counts for what I believe
A life in which love and compassion
Are the measure of what I achieve
So that when I look back from glory
From beyond my last setting sun
My Lord may proclaim at the judgment
“Good and faithful servant, well done!”
By Frank Carpenter ©

Landfalls

Today, I write from the bridge of a boat somewhere off the coast of Mexico. As we approach the U.S. border and the skyline of San Diego looms on the horizon, a surge of excitement begins to well up from within. San Diego holds no particular interest for me, but I adore almost any landfall. Now I’m a sailor so ocean ports instill a certain fascination in me, yet climbing out of an airplane, a bus, a train, or even a car warms my heart as well. I find myself enamored by even the most modest of adventures. Actually, all of life is an adventure and learning to relish the little passages along the way, with their assorted landfalls, can help to make our journeys all the more interesting. Even if you think you’re headed nowhere right now, I can assure you that it’s still somewhere. Every trip, however seemingly insignificant, can have purpose and value. Sometimes it doesn’t even matter what direction you’re traveling. Often the destinations can be less important than how you get there, who you’re with, what you think about en route or who you help along the way. My hope for you is that you may discover some interesting places to go and enjoy their requisite landfalls. However, even if you are merely commuting to work, it can have value. The simplest life can still be lived richly if it is imbued with meaning through your own personal view of it. When we are interested, life is interesting. As I conclude this writing,
my bows are now pointed out to sea once again. Ahead of me, the horizon is empty, devoid of land, other boats, and the like. On this clear winter day, with nothing but endless blue stretching out for dozens of miles, I feel as if the possibilities are endless … because they are. Before dark, however, we’ll be snug at harbor with another happy landfall under our belts. For me, that will be a bittersweet moment for this current voyage shall have come to an end. Yet, for the moment, my heart and mind are left to wander out across the broad expanse of the Pacific Ocean where I can imagine countless undiscovered landfalls which beckon to me from distant shores. In the mean time: good company, good sailing and good bye.

Landfalls
Perhaps the sweetest part of the journey
Is the landfall, once it=s reached
Be it airport, depot or the sand
>Neath a skiff, once it has beached
With the toils of the journey done
And adventure ahead and at hand
Landfalls bring to fruition
All the wonder of what was planned
The desert, the mountains, the shoreline
Whatever your paradise be
A landfall is the first kiss
Once the journey is history
I love the planning and plotting
And the adventure along the way
Oh, but the sweetest part of it all
Is stepping onto the quay
By Frank Carpenter

Demons of Distraction

If you’re anything like me, you never seem to get nearly as much accomplished as you plan to. Invariably, many of the most important things in life get nudged aside by the more pressing issues which distract us on a daily basis. I spend my time “majoring in the minors” and squander countless precious days and hours on those things which have marginal eternal value. Are you there too, constantly servicing the squeaky wheel when you know that the engine is sorely in need of maintenance? Folks like us need to work on getting our priorities straight so we can focus on those things in life which matter most. The demons of distraction will ever be clawing at us from every side. Can you feel them tugging at you even now? We must find a way to brush past them and make progress towards our hopes and dreams and goals. Perhaps we need accountability partners to check in with during the course of each day. Whatever it takes, aim your heart at your priorities and go get them. You’ll be glad you did.

The Demons of Distraction
We are consumed by the minutia
Of details throughout each day
So that the time we mean to spend
On what matters most erodes away
All the lofty goals and purpose
We intend to glean from life
Seem to wither in the urgency
Of our daily stress and strife
So that when we reach an epilog
And gaze back upon our wake
We find we’ve sacrificed too much
Merely for convenience sake
With our loftiest ambitions
Strewn across the workroom floor
Cast before the swine of urgency
Their luster glimmers never more
We dare not let the demons
Of distraction drag us down
Into the quagmire of compromise
Where hopes and dreams can drown
We must stand our ground and fight
For what is meaningful and true
Lest we wake up to discover
We had not lived ‘ere life was through
By Frank Carpenter ©

Never Too Late

Well, we’re a few days into the new year and it’s still not too late to contemplate some new beginnings in our lives. As we march through the months and years, sometimes we end up detouring off into directions we never intended. Perhaps, rather, you never did take a desired detour that you really want to take. Is there an area of your life which feels that way? Is it a relationship, a job, a habit or something else you intended to change or improve upon. This just may be the time. Why not? Now, I’m not suggesting that we do anything drastic without some careful thought or wise counsel. However, this may be just the moment to do something, anything, different. The important thing is that it’s never too late. It’s never too late to take that first crucial step towards your dreams or away from a destructive behavior. OK: say a little prayer, take a deep breath and make a baby step in the right direction. That’s how it all begins.

Never Too Late
Sometimes we find ourselves on a path
Where we never intended to be
Overwhelmed by the rising waters
Of an angry, storm tossed sea
Perhaps even one of our own making
Or one we failed somehow to prevent
With poor decisions or complacency
And we know we are nearly spent
When we find our hope is waning
And our courage slipping away
We begin to consider just giving up
Too discouraged even to pray
But it’s never too late to do the right thing
Never too late to make a stand
For into the depths of darkest water
God stretches out His hand
Offering help to the broken hearted
And peace to the battle worn
He gives strength to the weak and weary
And hope to the most forlorn
God always honors obedient men
Who choose humility over pride
For it’s never too late to do the right thing
Or to stand against the tide
By Frank Carpenter ©

Waves of Responsibility

Today, as I sit here in the comfort of my nice little home in southern California, the disaster and suffering in the Indian Ocean seems very far away. The death toll from last week’s Tsunami has soared close to 140,000 and the devastation in some areas is horrific, but my own insulation from that part of the world, from those people, is almost as complete as the isolation of some of the remote locations shown on the news. At first, I was as shocked and amazed as everyone else. Eventually, however, I discovered that my callused heart was more interested in earthquake science and the history of other large tidal waves than the plight of those who were suffering so much at this very moment half a world away. I’ve watched the news to keep up on the death toll. I’ve prayed half-heartedly from time to time this week. I even gave a little money at church when they took and offering for disaster relief. Sadly, though, I have somehow found a way to avoid getting emotionally involved in the situation. Is that wrong, is there something wrong with me?
Today, however, the whole thing has finally started to sink in. I keep thinking about the verse where Jesus said, “but if you give so must a cup of water to the least of these, then you have done so to me.” The implication, of course, is that to deny those who need our help is essentially to turn our backs on Jesus personally. Ouch, that one really hurts, or at least it should. This begins to beg the moral question of what our obligations and responsibilities are to other people, even if we have never met them or ever hope to. What do I owe to others, to strangers, on the far side of the globe … and what right do they have to expect my assistance? From a strictly academic point of view the answer can be found in two additional passages from the New Testament. First of all, when asked about the greatest commandments, Jesus replied that after loving God whole-heartedly our highest obligation was to love others, more specifically, our “neighbors.” Then, in the parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus clarified that our neighbors are those who are in need.
Now in about 30 A.D., when Jesus spoke these words, most folks lived within a fairly small circle of influence and, therefore, responsibility. However, here in the third millennium, things have changed a bit. Now that we are able to receive virtually instantaneous television transmissions from across the globe and have the ability to deliver disaster aid with jets and helicopters, it could well be argued that the term “neighbor” reaches far beyond the street where we live and quite possibly to the disaster ravished shores of Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Certainly, for those of us who believe there to be one God who is omnipresent, then it can be argued safely that our responsibility to both Him and His commandments is omnipresent as well. The people suffering in southern Asia right now are, therefore, my neighbors. So it occurs to me that perhaps we don’t have the luxury of ignoring them. All the more if we simply apply the good old fashioned golden rule.
Consequently, I therefore propose that we do have some kind of obligation to those who are suffering right now. I’m not quite sure what to I’m going to do, but it certainly must be something. Prayer is a good place to start. A little more money wouldn’t do any harm. Perhaps my personal next step is simply to write some more articles like this one, as that falls within my giftedness. Certainly, we all need to do something … and the time to act is now.